The conference is an initiative of APS which works to encourage and promote women and gender minorities to enter and continue their interests in the world of physics and astronomy. The three-day conference (January 19-21, 2024) encourages undergraduate women to continue in physics by providing them with the opportunity to experience a professional conference, information about graduate school and professions in physics, and access to other women in physics of all ages with whom they can share experiences, advice, and ideas.
West Virginia University applied to host this conference and was awarded the honor of serving as a 2024 site institution. The conference included a plenary lecture by medical physicist Dr. Julianne Pollard Larkin (right) of the MD Anderson Cancer Center and a keynote lecture by astrophysicist Dr. Jocelyn Bell Burnell, who discovered radio pulsars in 1967.
A few attendees were quoted by APS on their experience at the WVU CUWiP.
“I realized that the various professors here and mentors at APS would help me navigate the challenges in my undergraduate career and I loved the talks given by different speakers. It makes me feel propelled to embark on this trajectory of mine. ”
“My highlight was the career advice panels offered; the many career panels explaining all of the different paths you can take from earning a bachelor’s degree.”
With the support of many sponsors, both at West Virginia University and beyond, the conference was a huge success.